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THE ASPIRING SOLOPRENEUR

YOUR BUSINESS START-UP BIBLE

A tough but worthy and detailed overview of the world that business freelancers face.

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A debut guide targets entrepreneurs looking to strike out on their own and succeed in today’s economy.

Solopreneurs are business owners who run their enterprises “solo—as in, mostly by themselves,” writes Kluver. “They want to be accountable for themselves and their business without having employees or being an employee.” As the author points out, this is a rapidly growing segment of the working world: people fired up by dreams of success and facilitated by modern technology, which allows them to extend their reach far beyond the traditional and more local areas. Kluver, “an entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience,” cites a study that estimates that as much as 40% of the American workforce might be freelancers by 2020, as the gig economy continues to boom. The author’s aim in these pages is to give comprehensive guidelines and tips to readers who might want to join that freelancing crowd. He approaches his admittedly sprawling subject from many angles. There’s the psychological aspect, reminding his readers that they must avoid the “victim-based mentality” encouraged by much of modern society. (“You are always accountable to yourself,” he writes. “Nobody requires you to go to work.”) There’s also the practical level, with Kluver offering advice on subjects ranging from the pros and cons of investing in a business franchise to the variables of hiring a good attorney and finding an insurance agent who’s a good fit with the business. The author is refreshingly direct and honest throughout, indulging in none of the simple cheerleading so often found in books of this kind. When discussing what lies in store for hopeful solopreneurs when they inevitably deal with banks, for instance, Kluver warns them not to take it personally when institutions try to poke holes in their business models: “They aren’t trying to insinuate you will fail; they only want to know the probability of success, and you should as well.” There’s a wealth of insights in these pages: Aspiring freelancers of all kinds will find the book invaluable.

A tough but worthy and detailed overview of the world that business freelancers face.

Pub Date: Aug. 27, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-5445-1258-7

Page Count: 338

Publisher: Cherokee Street Publishing

Review Posted Online: Sept. 30, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2019

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THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE

50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION

Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...

Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.

Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").

Pub Date: May 15, 1972

ISBN: 0205632645

Page Count: 105

Publisher: Macmillan

Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972

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NUTCRACKER

This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

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